Time to recall that quiet man from the North East...

REMEMBER Bob Paisley? Obviously to football followers of a certain vintage - and particularly fans of Liverpool Football Club - it's a daft question.

He was the man who had the unenviable task of stepping into the role that had been held all the way from the winter of 1959 through to the high summer of 1974 by club legend Bill Shankly.

That celebrated son of Glenbuck helped pull the club up from its lowest ebb as a Second Division side to see it become a domestic and European powerhouse.

Shankly won many things as Liverpool boss - not least leading the team to its first FA Cup triumph in 1965 and breaking its European trophy duck when the UEFA Cup was won in 1973. In my view, he is the single most important man in the entire history of Liverpool Football Club.

It was some act for Paisley to follow - and boy, did he do it in style, all with a quiet professionalism that, given today's histrionics from some managers in particular, should be viewed as a breath of fresh air.

I cannot ever recall Paisley being brought before the football authorities with cases to answer for things he might have said during a game.

On the field, the teams Paisley managed were simply sensational and his record still stands the test of time.

Perhaps Sky Sports might like to take note of the fact he remains the only British football manager to lead a team to three European Cups.

Those trophies were achieved in an incredible spell of nine season at the Anfield helm. Six of those saw the Reds win the First Division title. Of the other three seasons, they finished runners-up by two points in his first campaign to Brian Clough's Derby County and by seven points in 1977-78 to Nottingham Forest, again Old Big 'Ead having the upper hand. His 'worst' league campaign came in 1980-81 when the Reds finished fifth, nine points behind Aston Villa. Remember, all these seasons were in the days when a win was just two points.

Having written all that, those 'barren' league years did reap a European Cup - Paisley's second - in 1977-78 and both a European Cup and the club's first-ever League Cup in season 1980-81.

His six league titles won in those nine remarkable seasons saw the Reds win the crown ahead of QPR, Manchester City, Nottingham Forest, Manchester United, Ipswich Town and Watford.

The last one - 1982-83 - saw the Reds run away with the top flight and they ended up winning it by a massive 11 points. They also added another League Cup for good measure.

All of which leads me to come to the not unreasonable conclusion that given the short amount of time he was in the post and amount of silverware won in that time, Paisley has to be regarded as the most successful manager in Liverpool's history and, indeed, British football history.

Yes, Ferguson's record is tremendous - but then he has been there more than a quarter-of-a-century and you would naturally expect silverware to follow. Otherwise, he would not have remained in the post given the magnitude of the club.

But as things stand, he still trails the man from Hetton-le-Hole in European Cups - and I for one hope that will forever be the case.

I'll leave the final word with the great man himself talking about managing the club:

"I said that when I took over that I would settle for a drop of Bell's once a month, a big bottle at the end of the season and a ride round the city in an open top bus!"

Rest In Peace, Sir Bob. Your record is still secure.